Willow Voice runs on Mac, Windows and iPhone, and its vendor describes an offline mode on Mac and iOS, so offline alone will not separate the two apps. Hovor is the alternative if you want one-time unlocks next to a subscription, your own provider keys, and meetings.
Both products list Mac, Windows and iPhone. Willow's own blog (willowvoice.com/blog/best-offline-speech-to-text-tools, checked 5 October 2026) describes offline dictation on Mac and iOS, and Hovor also dictates on-device on supported devices. The differences are in how you pay, bring-your-own-key access, and what else the app does. Windows is a beta in Hovor. The table covers what the vendor states on each side.
| Feature | Willow Voice | Hovor |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Mac, Windows, iPhone (willowvoice.com, checked 5 October 2026) | iPhone, Mac, Windows (beta) |
| Offline dictation | Mac and iOS through settings; Windows is cloud processing only, with zero data retention (vendor blog, checked 5 October 2026) | On supported devices, with a model you download in the app; the Windows beta has optional on-device Parakeet on PCs with an AVX2-capable CPU |
| Free plan | Basic: "Unlimited weaker speech-to-text model (Frontier Mini)", "20 Scribe uses per week" (willowvoice.com/pricing, checked 5 October 2026) | 2,000 words per week, shared between cloud and on-device dictation |
| Pro price | $15 user/mo monthly, $12 user/mo on the annual toggle (willowvoice.com/pricing, checked 5 October 2026) | $7.00/mo or $65.00/yr |
| One-time purchase | Not stated on willowvoice.com/pricing | Local Unlock $20.00, BYOK Unlock $15.00, Bundle $30.00 |
| BYOK (bring your own API key) | Not stated on willowvoice.com/pricing | Pro, or the one-time $15.00 BYOK Unlock; keys stay in your device's Keychain |
| Languages | "100+ languages" (willowvoice.com/pricing, checked 5 October 2026) | 30+ languages for dictation |
Willow Voice is the stronger pick when Windows support, a formal security posture or a long language list decides the question. Its claims below are the vendor's own wording; we have not tested them.
Hovor offers one-time unlocks next to the subscription, bring-your-own-key access, meetings, an iPhone keyboard for any app, and account sync of your dictionary and snippets. Each is detailed below.
Hovor sells two one-time unlocks as well as Pro. Local Unlock ($20.00) gives unlimited on-device dictation, unlimited replacements, snippets and workflows, and Meetings, on iPhone and Mac. BYOK Unlock ($15.00) lets you use your own provider keys. The Bundle ($30.00) contains both. Local Unlock does not include cloud dictation or BYOK, and BYOK Unlock does not include the Hovor Cloud fallback. Family Sharing works for the one-time purchases made in the App Store. Willow's pricing page (willowvoice.com/pricing, checked 5 October 2026) does not state a one-time option.
With Pro or the one-time BYOK Unlock you can use your own OpenAI, Anthropic, Deepgram, ElevenLabs or custom-endpoint keys. The keys stay in this device's Keychain and are never sent to Hovor, and they do not sync between devices. With Pro, Hovor can fall back to Hovor Cloud automatically if your provider fails; that fallback is Pro-only.
On iPhone and Mac, Local Unlock or Pro includes Meetings: record a meeting and get a speaker-labelled transcript. On iPhone it is stored on your device and needs a device that can run Parakeet. Meetings are not available on Windows.
The Hovor keyboard types dictated text into any app on iPhone; it requires Full Access. On Mac, a global keyboard shortcut starts and stops dictation and the text is pasted into the app you are using (this needs Accessibility permission). On Windows, the beta pastes into the active app and the hotkey can be rebound in Settings.
Your dictionary, snippets and usage stats sync with your account across your devices. Workflows do not sync. The Free plan allows up to 2 devices and Pro up to 5.
Willow Pro is $15 user/mo on the monthly toggle and $12 user/mo on the annual toggle, which the page labels "Save 20%"; the page shows no yearly total. Hovor Pro is $7.00/month or $65.00/year.
| Willow Voice | Hovor | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Basic: "Unlimited weaker speech-to-text model (Frontier Mini)", "Limited personalization, 20 Scribe uses per week" | 2,000 words per week, shared between cloud and on-device dictation |
| Monthly | $15 user/mo | $7.00 |
| Annual toggle | $12 user/mo ("Save 20%"; no yearly total shown) | $65.00/yr |
| Paid plan includes | "Unlimited smartest speech-to-text model (Frontier Pro)", "Unlimited Scribe usage", "Increased dictation length" | No weekly word limit on cloud dictation, translation and sync; includes Local and BYOK access; up to 5 devices |
| One-time purchase | Not stated on willowvoice.com/pricing | Local Unlock $20.00 · BYOK Unlock $15.00 · Bundle $30.00 |
| BYOK access | Not stated on willowvoice.com/pricing | Included in Pro, or the one-time $15.00 BYOK Unlock |
Pricing source for Willow: the vendor's pricing page (willowvoice.com/pricing, checked 5 October 2026).
Switching takes five steps.
Both can. Willow's blog (willowvoice.com/blog/best-offline-speech-to-text-tools, checked 5 October 2026) says offline mode is available through settings on Mac and iOS, and that Windows is cloud processing only. Hovor's on-device models work on supported devices after you download them, and you sign in to use Hovor.
Willow Pro is $15 user/mo monthly and $12 user/mo on the annual toggle (willowvoice.com/pricing, checked 5 October 2026). Hovor Pro is $7.00/month or $65.00/year; the pricing table above also covers the free plans and the one-time unlocks.
For on-device use, yes: Local Unlock is a one-time $20.00. It does not include cloud dictation, which needs Pro.
Yes, with Pro or the one-time $15.00 BYOK Unlock. Keys stay in your device's Keychain.
On iPhone and Mac, yes, with Local Unlock or Pro. Meetings are not available on Windows.
Yes, as a beta, with the installer on hovor.app/downloads. Willow's blog (willowvoice.com/blog/wispr-flow-vs-willow-voice-dictation, checked 5 October 2026) says Willow is designed for full parity across Mac, Windows and iOS.
iPhone, Mac and Windows (beta). Free plan with 2,000 words per week. On-device dictation on supported devices.
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